Solid waste management in El Salvador

By zone_admin | 23 de May de 2022 | Blog

Improper solid waste management has been a constant problem over the years, whose urgency increases as we approach an environmental point of no return. Given this situation, it is essential to take concrete actions to reduce the amount of waste generated in the country. In El Salvador, more than 3,600 tons of waste are produced daily, according to the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, the composition of the waste generated is: 58% organic matter and 42% inorganic matter. The composition of the inorganic fraction is; 2% aluminum, 2% glass, 11% plastic, 19% paper and 8% others, of which 75% can be recycled, reused or behaved. Solid urban waste is that which originates from the domestic and commercial activity of cities and towns. In developed countries, more and more packaging, paper, and all kinds of disposable materials are used; the culture of "use and throw away" has spread and implanted to all types of consumer goods, causing the amounts of garbage generated to have grown to reach very high figures The waste produced by urban dwellers includes ordinary waste, old furniture and appliances, packaging, waste from commercial activity, leftovers from garden care, street cleaning, etc. As expected, this is the largest group and its residues are usually composed of:
  • Organic matter: these are the remains from cleaning or preparing food along with leftover food.
  • Paper and cardboard: newspapers, magazines, advertising, boxes and packaging.
  • Plastics: bottles, various jars, broken crockery, etc.
  • Metals: aluminum cans, boats, containers, etc.
The problem of waste is becoming more difficult to control every day. Large amounts of waste are generated daily that the municipal service is unable to collect because it does not have the resources to provide full coverage. The collection frequency is low, from one to three times a week, so the waste accumulates and unfortunately the population does not cooperate in depositing the garbage in the appropriate places. For years, municipalities have experienced problems with solid waste, which over time have become increasingly complex, to the point that it has had to be addressed under a multidisciplinary approach, which incorporates economic, social and environmental elements. , so that its mitigation is feasible. Given this, each municipality develops a scheme of needs, resources and actions to be carried out, which allow it to face this problem, "management" should not be limited to carrying out collection-transport and final disposal practices, but rather, it should involve technical factors. , sociocultural, economic-administrative, institutional, legal and environmental, which intensify it and turn it into an integral management of solid waste. This issue has gained importance since 2009 with the creation of the Presidential Commission for the Comprehensive Management of Solid Waste; and with the launch in 2010 of the National Program, in compliance with Art. 52 of the Environmental Law, which has been implemented through three plans:
  1. The Improvement Plan: Aimed at expanding the installed capacity of the country, through the construction of three new sanitary landfills and the organization of a network of more than 30 composting plants at the municipal level;
  2. The Recovery Plan: Focused on strengthening the separation of waste at the generation site (homes, industries, businesses, etc.), the formalization of selective collection systems and the establishment of waste utilization systems.
  3. The Awareness Plan: Which establishes the education and awareness actions that allow the change of habits and practices of the population regarding waste management.
The Ministry of the Environment has developed a series of guidelines and guides to guide waste management at all levels, such as the instructions to implement separation programs at the source, for the installation and operation of collection centers, for the management disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) and citizen guides for the management of hazardous waste and WEEE. Various political actors such as Deputies and Municipalities have also presented proposals such as the General Law on Waste, the Law on Waste Management and Recycling and the General Law on Comprehensive Waste Management, in order to guarantee the right of everyone to live in a healthy environment. and promote sustainable development through the prevention of generation, take into account technological advances for the use of materials at the end of their useful life, prevent contamination of sites and allow their remediation, as well as reduce and prevent the effects to climate change and environmental liabilities. The health, scenic and environmental consequences that persist today in the management of waste, have forced to eradicate open dumps and seek environmentally appropriate alternatives for the final disposal of waste, as well as to consider options that optimize activities. of collection-transport and alternative treatments. In this way, it is vitally important to educate the population in relation to Reduce, Recycle and Reuse (known as the 3 Rs scheme) as well as the continuous adoption of new technologies that allow manufacturing with less waste production, which It also has the added value that costs are reduced because less raw material is wasted. References: MARN and Ing. MSc. Claudia Cecilia Leiva Bautista. Theorethikos Magazine Year III, No. 004, October – December, 2000, Francisco Gavidia University. The Savior.